Netscape Veterans Launch Video Startup

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Mobinfo Motivated Muti mobile info processor <<<Seach Engine+SN+SC+KM +KB + OPEN MEDIA NETWORK | Top | Netscape Veterans Launch Video Startup Time:2005-05-01 May 1st 2005 Sat Sunny Streaming media Thursday, April 28, 2005 Netscape Veterans Launch Video Startup Two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who helped ignite the dot-com boom in the late '90s have launched a startup that aims to let independent film makers, public television broadcasters and anyone else distribute video over the Internet. by Rachel Konrad Open Media Network is meant to help broaden the audience for any amateur or professional producer of video or audio clips. Public TV stations WGBH of Boston, KQED of San Francisco and KWSU of Washington State University are already offering video programs on the network. The nonprofit behind it also hopes to cultivate a following for cutting-edge clips produced specifically for the Internet, much like the "podcasts" that allow anyone to host a radio program. The peer-to-peer network, launched this week, is the brainchild of Mike Homer and Marc Andreessen, veterans of Netscape Communications Corp., the developer of the first major commercial Web browser. A free version of Open Media Network, still in a "beta" test phase, lets users play clips on desktop computers, laptops and iPod music players. By this summer, the software will work on some televisions and cell phones. The network will remove programs that violate copyright or are "unsuitable" for viewing, though it's not clear whether or how it might censor for pornography, violence or other would-be offenses. The network does offer content producers a built-in digital-rights management system to limit sharing, duplication or viewing. Though clips on the network are now free, future versions of the software will likely include a payment system for producers to charge for premium content. Thursday, April 28, 2005 AOL Readies Next-Generation IM Tools America Online Inc. is preparing to ditch its decade-old instant messaging platform, building a replacement from scratch that's designed to integrate text, audio, video and future forms of communication. by Anick Jesdanun AOL has released an early, limited-feature preview of its next-generation IM software, called Triton, and hopes to complete it by year's end. AOL plans only one more update to the existing AIM software, now at version 5.9. The key difference will be the use of tabs to manage a growing list of contacts. Currently, chats with different contacts occur in separate windows, quickly cluttering the computer desktop. Add to that ways to communicate beyond text, including audio, video and file transfers. Triton (pronounced TRY-ton) keeps all that within a single window. You'll flip through vertical tabs to change contacts and horizontal ones to switch the mode of communication. AOL engineers took a modular approach in building Triton. That means new features, such as support for Internet-based phones, can be easily added as a block rather than retrofitted into the software as is now the case. Chamath Palihapitiya, general manager of AIM, said the original software was designed in 1996 with text in mind. "Would you ever have thought in 1996 that this computer is going to be used for ... sending stuff to mobile phones and initiating calls over the Internet?" he asked. Triton will also incorporate "IM Catcher," IM's version of a spam folder. The tool collects all messages from those not on your buddy list. Wednesday, April 27, 2005 RealNetworks Unveils Rhapsody to Go Music Service Digital media company RealNetworks Inc. on Tuesday said it expanded its subscription music service to allow paying subscribers access to more than 1 million songs and now will allow nonpaying users to listen to 25 songs for free each month. by Kenneth Li and Franklin Paul The Seattle-based company, which operates the Rhapsody subscription music service, also debuted a new service that lets subscribers download an unlimited number of songs onto compatible portable digital music players. With an expanded suite of services, RealNetworks appears to be hedging its bet on how consumers want to buy and listen to music in the coming years as it aims to chip away at Apple's dominance in music online. It's a work-in-progress that aligns it with the world's music labels. Real's chief executive, Rob Glaser, told reporters the top four labels are supporting the service. The music industry, which continues to face declining sales of CDs, views the digital music market as a key area of growth to court a new generation of listeners. The digital music downloading business is dominated by Apple Computer Inc., with its iPod digital players and iTunes music management software. The revamped Rhapsody service will attempt to compete more directly with Apple's iTunes. Rhapsody will now let users manage all music on a computer, not just music downloaded from the service. Songs purchased from Real's services will also now work with more Apple iPod models, Glaser told Reuters in an interview after the presentation. "We're supporting more iPod devices than before," Glaser said, adding that no conversions about interoperability had occurred, but left the door open. PARENTAL CONTROL The new software will also come with parental control features to help parents screen out objectionable material. Real's portable service, "Rhapsody To Go," will cost about $15 a month, which includes a subscription to the main Rhapsody service. Only a few devices as yet support the portable service, including models made by Creative Technology Ltd. and iriver. These devices will include Microsoft Corp. developed copyright management software that disables the playing of songs after a subscriber stops paying a recurring fee. Real said music companies will be paid for the downloaded songs "at a rate that is generally comparable to full on-demand subscription services. By letting users "sip" from a menu of 25 songs each month, Glaser hoped the service will spur increases in consumer subscriptions and purchases of music. Costs for running the service will be offset by Real's business relationship with Google Inc. and a new sponsorship pact with DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler. Glaser said the company also was mulling a service to offer music over wireless cell-phone networks, although he admitted that the business models have yet to be decided. "We're in active conversations with a number of cell-phone companies and providers," Glaser told reporters at a news conference in New York, although he said there were no deals to announce. Real's new service, which had been widely expected, resembles a similar service launched earlier this year by Napster Inc., whose own system lets paying subscribers fill up digital music players with an unlimited amount of music instead of purchasing individual songs. Mobinfo Posted at 2005-05-01 01:25:43 Edit | Trackback(0) Comments Add Comment Updated